Portland officials anticipate aid reduction from Connecticut

Jeff Mill

Published 12:00 am, Tuesday, January 1, 2013

PORTLAND >> Town officials are uneasy as they await more details about the impact of deficit cutting discussions now taking place in Hartford.

During the Board of Selectmen's most recent meeting, Selectman Frederick R. Knous called his colleagues' attention to what he said were worrisome comments about the future of state aid to the towns and cities.

As the state attempts to rein in a burgeoning deficit, Brendan Sharkey, whose name has been bruited about as the likely next Speaker of the House, has said some reduction in state aid to municipalities is almost certain, Knous said.

If Sharkey is right and if the governor does reduce the amount of aid that it gives to the town, that will not be welcome news to First Selectwoman Susan S. Bransfield.

"A cut in state aid is a tax increase," Bransfield said, telling her selectmen colleagues they could face a Hobson's choice as the state continues to wrestle with the budget deficit.

"You can either severely reduce the services you provide to our residents or it's a tax increase," Bransfield said.

In the wake of the selectmen's meeting, Bransfield met with Director of Finance Tom Robinson to get a more complete sense of the likely impact if the state does move to reduce the amount of aid it sends to the towns.

State aid accounts for fully 17 percent of the town's annual budget, Bransfield said following her conservations with Robinson.

The largest single portion of state aid to the town is Education Cost Sharing funds, which amount to approximately $4.5 million, Bransfield said.

Additional funds are also paid to the town for road upkeep and repairs.

Knous's warning comes as the town begins to pull together the various strands of the proposed 2013-14 town budget, which Bransfield will present to the selectmen within the next two months.

The issue of state aid is always a tricky one for municipalities, who, in general, complete action on their budgets before the General Assembly completes action on the state budget.

The possibility of reductions in the amount of state aid adds a new level of uncertainty to the process.